Royston Townsite
Roby vicinity, Fisher County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The town of Royston came into existence in 1906, when the Texas Central Railroad built a line through this area. In addition to the railroad depot, homes and businesses were soon established in the new town. The Royston Post Office was established in 1907. Businesses included a 30-room hotel, the "Royston Record" weekly newspaper, the Royston Mercantile Company, the Royston State Bank, a cotton gin, tin shop, grocery and hardware store, drug store, restaurant, and two lumberyards. A public school was in operation until 1947, when it was consolidated with McCaulley School. Churches in the town included Methodist, Baptist, and Pentecostal. The center of a rich agricultural area, Royston's economic base was broadened after the discovery of oil in the area in 1928. The railroad continued both freight and passenger service until 1972, and Royston was an important supply center for the surrounding agricultural area for a number of years. The town of Royston gradually declined, and the rails were removed by the railroad company. This site marks the approximate southern boundary of the town square. Now a ghost town, it is nevertheless an important part of Fisher County history. (1988)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Royston sprang up in 1906 when the Texas Central Railroad laid tracks across Fisher County, quickly gaining a depot, a 30-room hotel, a bank, a newspaper, and a bustling town square. As the hub of a rich cotton-farming district — later broadened by the 1928 oil discovery — it thrived for decades. When rail service ended in 1972 and the tracks were pulled up, the town faded into a ghost town.
Why it matters
Royston's rise and fall trace the familiar life cycle of the railroad boomtowns that briefly stitched together the agricultural West.
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Themes & tags
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